Ruben Negrete to be charged in stepson's beating death

St. Clair, MO (KSDK) - A 23-year-old Franklin County man could be facing second-degree murder charges after his one-year-old stepson died Tuesday, more than a week after he allegedly beat the child.

According to St. Clair Police Chief Bill Hammack, Cardinal Glennon Hospital contacted his department on November 18 that a young child had been admitted the day before with severe internal injuries, believed to be brought on by abuse.

Hammack said investigators learned Ruben Negrete struck his stepson several times at their residence on Quail Ridge Drive in an incident on November 9.

Ruben Negrete was charged with first-degree assault on November 19 and jailed on a $100,000 bond.

The boy, Manual Jackson, was pronounced dead just before 4:10 p.m. on November 20 at Cardinal Glennon Hospital.